In August 1966, the topics of service
fees, changes in airline commissions and sellers-of-travel
regulation were all front page news in Travel Weekly. The topics
have a contemporary ring, but a look at events then shows how far
-- for better or worse -- the industry has come in the past 40
years. Welcome to Back Stories, a new monthly feature looking at
the history of the industry, as reported in our pages over the last
48 years.
1.
To forestall state licensing legislation for travel agencies, ASTA
decided to once again explore working to establish federal
regulations. Today, nine states have sellers-of-travel laws, and
there is no federal legislation.
(August 16, 1966)
2. Airlines warned ARTA members not to charge a $3 service
fee for domestic air tickets. These days, agents routinely charge
fees -- and may themselves be charged $3.50 by the airlines for the
honor of writing a ticket.
(August 30, 1966)
3.
Travel Weekly forecasted that cruise revenue might soar to $170
million the following year. (Today, annual cruise revenue is
estimated at between $13 billion and $19 billion.) Despite fears
that the Caribbean market was stretched thin, an estimated 268,000
passengers were expected to sail that year. Today, that is just a
little above the number of berths afloat on any given
day.
(August 2,
1966, above and below)
4.
KLM proposed that IATA, which then set agency air commissions,
raise the rate from 7% to 9%, while Pan Am proposed that overrides
be increased for "inclusive tours." An IATA committee recommended
that "no electronic reservations equipment be placed in agents'
offices for the time being."